Malema is a hypocrite and an opportunist, Nzimande

Minister of higher education Blade Nzimande has described the EFF leader as a "hypocrite and an opportunist."

“He has just graduated. It’s very unfortunate of the leader of the EFF. I really don’t want to talk about him because he is a hypocrite of the worst order.”

Nzimande was responding to Malema’s call for students to continue with protests for free education.

Nzimande said EFF leaders were hypocrites because they had completed their university degrees.

“Some of them are doing PhD’s. They are studying but they want the children of the poor which they claim to be speaking for not get education by collapsing universities,” he said.

Nzimande said Malema’s statement did not benefit the poor but instead ensured poor students would become losers.

“The people who are going to lose most are the children of the poor. I don’t want to talk to him because he is a hypocrite and he is the worst opportunist who actually doesn’t do what he wants others to do,” he said.

Mass march

During a press briefing earlier on Thursday Malema told journalists that university students must not give up their fight for free education and “they must not be discouraged by rubber bullets or teargas”.

He added that the fight for free education is one of the reasons the party will be holding a mass march on November 2 in Tshwane.

Earlier this year Malema obtained his BA degree in political leadership and citizenship from the University of South Africa (Unisa) and party spokesperson Mbuyiseni Ndlozi is currently on study leave, working on his PhD thesis.

Students across various universities have been protesting since early September. This was prompted by an announcement by Nzimande that universities could increase fees, although the increments had to be capped at 8%.

Several institutions have been vandalised with some infrastructure torched during protests.

Police have so far arrest more than 300 students during this year’s protests.